You are here

Ringgold: Last Week Was More Interesting In College Football

Buck Ringgold has been a sports reporter for the Times Record since November 2000. He covers high school sports, with an emphasis on the area's Oklahoma high schools. Buck previously was the sports editor of newspapers in Siloam Springs, Kilgore, Texas, and Ville Platte, La., and won several journalism awards at each stop. A native of Ashdown, Ark., Buck is a graduate of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville with a bachelor's degree in journalism.

Well, after a ho-hum Week 4 in college football, Week 5 turned out to be better and a little bit wild.

We saw perhaps the best game in the SEC in quite a while, and that includes the classic Alabama-Texas A&M game from a few weeks ago, when Georgia outlasted LSU. It featured a fantastic duel between the teams’ quarterbacks, Aaron Murray (Georgia) and Zach Mettenberger (LSU). The only thing missing from this game was the zany late-game clock management from LSU coach Les Miles we’ve come to expect from the Mad Hatter.

We saw the possible re-emergence of a college football heavyweight in Oklahoma, which went into South Bend and beat Notre Dame for only the second time in program history. A team thought to be in a rebuilding mode this season suddenly has a chance to throw its name into not only conference championship contention but also the national championship picture.

We saw Ohio State coach Urban Meyer not go with the hot hand of quarterback Kenny Guiton but rather use the established quarterback which can give the Buckeyes a shot at a title. Braxton Miller, back from an injury, didn’t miss a beat in throwing four TD passes in a win against Wisconsin.

We saw a potential conference title favorite get upset by a team coming off a dismal shutout loss. Oklahoma State went into West Virginia and did not see the same team which lost 37-0 to Maryland. The Cowboys — projected by many to win the Big XII — suddenly have a few questions.

We saw a top 10 team get challenged in its first road game before winning, as Texas A&M got past Arkansas. The win keeps alive the Aggies’ hopes of staying within striking distance of Alabama to grab the SEC West. While the Razorbacks are still not all the way back, they’re still much better than last season’s bumfuzzled outfit.

Speaking of Alabama, we saw the Crimson Tide return to vintage form, completely shutting down a high-powered Ole Miss offense. The Tide defense is much better than it showed in the win against A&M. They proved it against the Rebels, a team many thought had a chance knock off the defending two-time national champs.

Oh, and we also saw Lane Kiffin get fired. Well, most of us actually didn’t see the firing as it happened in the wee hours of Sunday morning and most of us didn’t know about it until we woke up. But we did see Arizona State do an absolute number on Southern Cal in the late Saturday night game.

This week will answer a few more questions, many involving those teams.

Can Georgia carry over the momentum of its win against LSU into Saturday’s game at Tennessee? While it seems the Bulldogs are the better team, Neyland Stadium is still a tough place to play and the Vols are still seeking a win against a big-time opponent.

Will Oklahoma suffer a letdown from the Notre Dame game and be caught looking ahead to Texas? There have been a large number of “Oklahoma is back” talk. The Sooners host TCU, but the Horned Frogs are definitely a team not to be overlooked. TCU coach Gary Patterson also knows how to win in Norman, as the Horned Frogs won there in 2005.

Can Ohio State remain perfect under coach Urban Meyer? Saturday’s game at Northwestern may be Meyer’s first true challenge since taking over the Buckeyes. Northwestern has the weapons to pull off the win and it should be a raucous atmosphere.

How will Oklahoma State bounce back against Kansas State? The Cowboys are back at home, which helps. (A quick aside: Hard to believe OSU has played just one game in Stillwater the first five weeks of the season.) While we know too well never to bet against KSU coach/living legend Bill Snyder, the Wildcats appear to be vulnerable.

Is Notre Dame still not the same team it was last season? Most definitely, although I think the loss of quarterback Everett Golson is the biggest void of all. Golson may have made a difference in the Fighting Irish’s losses to Michigan and Oklahoma. ND may suffer another loss on Saturday in a game against a solid Arizona State team in the neutral site of JerryWorld in Arlington, Texas.

Can Alabama post another shutout? The odds look good in the Tide’s favor as they step out of SEC play to face Georgia State, which comes in at 0-4. I say maybe not, as Georgia State finds a way to score on Alabama’s reserves late in the game. But it will be a win nevertheless for the Tide.

Ringgold’s Top 10

1. Alabama — Tide will have a laugher this week, even without Ha Ha.

2. Ohio State — First real test for Urban Meyer as Bucks’ coach against Northwestern.

3. Oregon — Ducks could go from playing in rain last week to playing in snow at Colorado.

4. Clemson — Counting down the days till Tigers take on Florida State.